COLLEGE STATION — Johnny Football isn't just helping Texas A&M University on the football field.

The resurgence of Aggies football helped Texas A&M raise a record $740 million in donations during the past year. The Austin American-Statesman reported Monday (http://bit.ly/16wWgK7 ) that the fundraising haul exceeds the university's previous high mark by nearly 70 percent.

It also dwarfed the more than $400 million raised by rival University of Texas during the same period.

Texas A&M Foundation president Ed Davis said the campus is enjoying more energy thanks in part to the Aggies' return as a college football power. Quarterback Johnny Manziel won the Heisman Trophy last year while leading Texas A&M to its best season in more than a decade.

The notoriety on the gridiron is resulting in a higher profile for the university, Davis said. The school also is benefiting from a thriving energy sector that's boosting the fortunes of many donors, he said, and an increasing number of alumni reaching age 55 or so, when they tend to get more serious about donating.

"We're kind of a place seen as on the move," Davis said.

More than $160 million in donations are pegged for the redevelopment of the Aggies' stadium, Kyle Field.